Uttarakhand: Rescue almost over, long and hard work of rehab lies ahead

GANGOTRI/DEHRADUN/NEW DELHI: The weather didn't help on Wednesday. Evacuation of all pilgrims and tourists - now mainly stuck in the Badrinath-Joshimath area - will take another three or four days. But the authorities and activists say they are safe and will be out sooner than later. They also say the really difficult part of the task will begin then.

"That's when the media attention will shift from the hills, and the flow of money and relief will dry up," said Anil Joshi, founder of Hesco, a reputed NGO in Uttarakhand. "But that's when the painstakingly slow process of rebuilding thousands of shattered lives will begin. It will take at least three to four years if proper rehabilitation is done."

This doesn't seem an exaggeration. According to estimates, anything between 100 and 125 villages have been badly damaged by the floods. The information is incomplete because many areas of the four affected districts - Uttarkashi, Chamoli, Rudraprayag and Garhwal - remain cut off. These districts have a population over 16 lakh.

The lives of many of them have been reduced to literally nothing. Their homes have been destroyed, but they've also lost their livelihoods. Boulders cover the small patches of agricultural land, most livestock has perished, shops have been destroyed, roads have disappeared, power lines have snapped and what's more, a big source of their income - tourists and pilgrims - won't come here for the next three to four years.

Take the example of this tiny hamlet of 500 people in Uttarkashi - Dharali, which is the last village on way to the China border from Gangotri. The downpour of June 15 and the resultant floods destroyed almost every house. It also snatched away from these people all their food and with the land devastated and tourists gone, they have no source of income.

This isn't all. The fury of the floods has left the locals so traumatized that they run up into tiny caves each time it rains here. "The moment we hear thunder, we run to the caves," said 40-year-old Savita. "Our ration's exhausted. We don't know what to do now," said the elderly Rajendri. "We desperately need help. But apart from the jawans, no one from the government has come," added Jai Bhagwan Panwar, the ex pradhan of the village.

In many ways, Dharali is a microcosm of the bigger reality. Thousands here are at a complete loss: with their lives shattered to bits, they have no idea of how to deal with the situation. The government's focus has so far been on trapped pilgrims and tourists, and no one has really paid any attention to the locals.

Uttarakhand chief secretary Subhash Kumar told TOI on Wednesday that the task of reconstruction was daunting. He said it would take two to three years, but feared that corruption and red tape will hurt the effort. "Our experience has been of vested interests feasting on people's misery," he said. This year may not be an exception given the way government departments have lost no time to place exaggerated demands for funds, he said.

Anil Joshi said that with life being reduced to zero for many in the hills, the coming days are likely to see a large scale migration of Uttarakhandis to relatives in the plains and cities. "It's very important that rehabilitation takes care of people's social and psychological requirements," he said.

What's the best way of rehabilitation? "The strategy must revolve around local resources, skills and market scenarios," said Joshi. "It should be planned in a manner that the livelihood support system becomes priority. This will sustain the community's interest in their villages. The government machinery normally fails to reach remote villages. Therefore, local community organizations must be roped in. The local panchayats, community organization, primary schools, which are everywhere, must be involved. Only a decentralized approach to rehabilitation will succeed here."

A senior official in Dehradun admitted that the relief operations have not reached the local residents and currently the priority was evacuate the pilgrims and tourists stuck there. "There is a fear that after this rescue operation is over; the locals will be left to fend for themselves," he said.